Ever hear the story of the man from the Snowbelt who changed the Sunbelt? Probably not. And neither had we until coming across his name.

Today’s story is about how a Yankee changed things all over the country — but especially in the South.

Angola, New York, is a place you’ve probably never heard of unless you were born there. Even then, it might have been a place from which you couldn’t wait to get away. Angola is south of Buffalo, kind of like Woodbury in relation to Nashville, geographically. Today, Angola is a small town of approximately 2,000 people; but in the 1870s, only about 600 people lived there.

Although small, the town still produced some legends. We’re not talking about the legendary Christian Laettner, a gold medal-winning basketball player and famously hated ex-NBA player, or the legendary Monroe Salisbury, the silent film actor — not the steak guy. No, the legend in today’s story goes by the name of Willis.

Willis was born and raised in Angola before graduating from Cornell University and getting a job at the Buffalo Forge Company as an engineer in 1901. The world was very different a century ago in Buffalo. Electricity had only become mainstream within the past decade or so. However, this meant tremendous opportunity for innovation and invention utilizing the new power source. Subsequently, Willis was tasked with working on a project for a paper company.

When you think of an invention that changed the world we live in today, you probably don’t think of “paper.” You might think food processing or the automotive industry. You might even think about construction or aeronautics. But not paper. Astoundingly, it was with a printing plant project that Willis began his journey to fame and legendary accomplishment.

Before the printing press assignment in 1902, Willis completed a project for the Buffalo Forge Company that saved about $40,000 a year in production costs. This would equate to about $1 million in today’s economy. Obviously, his bosses believed Willis was qualified to head up a new department in the company focused on experimental development. (If you save $1 million a year, company management is more likely to award a plum position as long as you produce.)

One of Willis’ first tasks was to fix a print quality issue at the Sackett & Wilhelms Lithography & Printing Press. They had problem with printing consistency due to the paper and ink changing between jobs. When there is too much water in the air, the paper and ink absorb some of that water, which makes the sheets heavier and the ink thinner. Thus, it’s harder to print large batches of consistent quality.

Willis had to figure out a way to lower the amount of water in the air to optimize the performance of the printing presses.

To solve the problem, he reverse-engineered steam production to figure out how to remove water from the air. This may seem like a simple task; but in 1902, many of the technological advances that today we take for granted hadn’t been developed.

Willis, being smart and observant, one day noticed condensation forming around cold objects. You know, like when your mirror gets fogged up because it’s colder than the steam of your shower. He decided to test running cold water through coils and blowing the air of the paper plant over the coils to remove the excess water. This resulted in the creation of the first dehumidifier and, consequently, the humidifier by reversing the process with hot water to create steam.

Willis continued to work on his design and patented it in January of 1906 under the name “The Apparatus for Treated Air.” Soon, his invention was a nationwide hit and adopted in manufacturing, textile and printing plants around the country. Willis and a few other engineers formed a new company to mass-produce the systems.

Stuart Cramer of Charlotte, N.C., decided to create a version of Willis’ humidifier to improve efficiency at his textile mill. Cramer filed an adaptation for a patent in 1906 based on his humidifier variation, but he used a different name — a name that Willis would quickly adopt as his company grew.

What was the term that Cramer used to influence Willis’s invention? Well, he called it an “air conditioner.” In fact, so many benefits accrued due to the ability to “condition air,” this technology became the foundation of a worldwide industry that continues to advance more than 100 years later.

The name of Willis’s company? Carrier Engineering Corporation. Today it’s called Carrier Corporation, a world leader in the air conditioning and refrigeration industry.

And that’s the story of Willis Carrier, the legend from the small town of Angola, N.Y., who invented the first air conditioner. We told you this would be the story of a legend from the Snowbelt who forever changed the Sunbelt. Can you imagine the South without air conditioning in homes, business or automobiles? For all of us who sweat too much as it is, we want to say a special thanks to Willis Carrier, the “Yankee Who Changed the South.”

Middle Tennessee Electric wants to remind all members and communities about the importance of energy efficiency. Small improvements to your home add up to big savings. For instance, did you know that your HVAC system consumes about 50 percent of your home’s energy each month? If you maintain your unit through tune-ups and changing out air filters, you can improve efficiency — which leads to less wasted energy and extends the life of your unit.

Another small thing you can do to make a big difference on your monthly bill is to raise the temperature setting of your thermostat. Each degree you adjust it above 72 can save almost 3 percent on your bill. Of course, savings depend on the size of your home and other factors, but everyone can save something.

Members of the editorial and news staff of the USA Today Network were not involved in the creation of this content.